塞内冈比亚

Senegambia, officially the Senegambia Confederation or Confederation of Senegambia, was a loose confederation in the late 20th century between the West African countries of Senegal and its neighbour The Gambia, which is almost completely surrounded by Senegal. The confederation was founded on 1 February 1982 following an agreement between the two countries signed on 12 December 1981. It was intended to promote cooperation between the two countries, but was dissolved by Senegal on 30 September 1989 after The Gambia refused to move closer toward union.

Background

Early history

As a political unit, Senegambia was created by duelling French and English colonial forces in the region. Competition between the French and English started in the late 16th century when merchants from both nations started to establish trading centres in the region. Although there was some overlap in their areas of influence, French trade centred on the Senegal River and the Cap-Vert region and English trade on the Gambia River. As European trading activities in the region intensified, Senegambia quickly became a major African center of the Atlantic triangular trade, with merchants from Europe bringing manufactured goods to trade for gold, ivory and slaves.

During various periods of conflict between the British and the French in the 18th century, the trading posts of both nations in Senegambia quickly became military targets. During the Seven Years' War, American merchant Thomas Cumming convinced Southern Secretary William Pitt to dispatch a British expeditionary force to capture French trading posts in Senegal;……

Period of the Confederation

Union and early issues

In December 1981, Senegal and the Gambia signed an agreement to form a confederation which officially came into existence on 1 February 1982. The two countries agreed to unite their militaries, security forces, economies and monetary systems. Politically, Senegal and the Gambia maintained separate cabinets, though shared power in a confederate government, with a Senegalese serving as president and a Gambian serving as vice-president. In the short term, the Senegambia Confederation was a pragmatic union based on a mutual security interest. As noted, the Senegalese government feared national instability caused by uprisings in either the Gambia or the Casamance region. The attempted coup resulted in both countries' leaders promoting the unification ideas which had been developing in the region.

However, there were early issues in regards to the Senegambia Confederation. The new union proved to be "largely ceremonial" in many regards, and neither member state was satisfied with its conditions. Hughes and Lewis, in their Senegambia analysis, list many problems with unions which often lead to failure, which this union shared.……

Politics

Government

Though Senegal and the Gambia maintained their own national governments, a confederate cabinet was also formed. Per the 1981 agreement, a Senegalese would always serve as the President and a Gambian as the vice-president of Senegambia. Both countries agreed to coordinate their defense and foreign policies. A confederal parliament and permanent secretariat were also organized; the former began meeting for one month annually from 1984. The Senegambia Permanent Secretariat was responsible for implementing the various agreements of the two countries.

In 1985, the Senegambian government consisted of the following individuals:

Military

Senegambia Confederation relied on three militaries: The Confederal Army, the Senegalese military, and the Gambian military. While the latter two remained national forces, the Confederal Army was organized from 1983/84 as integrated force of the confederation. It was composed of two-thirds Senegalese and one-third Gambian soldiers, and supposed to deploy anywhere within the confederation. In the Gambia, the Confederal Army quickly assumed a position of prestige.……